1. Technical Field
This invention relates to a scaffolding lift system and, more particularly, to a power operated scaffolding lift system including an elongated base member for supporting a scaffolding thereabove.
2. Prior Art
In performing construction work on a building, it is often required to work at locations above the ground adjacent a building. Typically, to work in such locations, construction personnel erect building scaffolding to permit them to stand on a platform supported above the ground by the scaffolding. Such platforms are usually accessed with the use of a ladder.
If the job requires that heavy articles such as bricks or concrete block are needed on the platform, a construction worker must carry such bricks or block up the ladder or must employ a forklift truck or crane to lift the heavy articles. Carrying the articles up the ladder by hand is impractical and the use of a forklift truck or crane adds to the complexity and cost of completing the work on the building. What is needed therefore is a builder's lift device which is economical to manufacture, easy to carry over rough ground, quick to install and dismantle, eliminates the need to carry objects up the ladder, and which eliminates the use of a forklift truck and crane.
The temporary scaffolding commonly employed in construction provides elevated staging areas for materials, workers and equipment. Such scaffolding is available in generally rectangular frames, and is normally set up in pairs interconnected by diagonal bracing to form relatively rigid scaffolding frameworks. The frames are often stackable so that scaffolding systems can be assembled to various heights. Typically, planks are extended between the spaced scaffolding frames to provide staging areas for the materials, workers and equipment.
An exemplary use of such a scaffolding system is in masonry construction, which often requires the elevation of relatively large amounts of materials. As the masonry construction progresses upwardly, mortar and the masonry units (e.g. bricks, blocks, stones, etc.) are lifted to staging areas on the scaffolding system at appropriate heights. On many masonry construction jobs, the materials are elevated entirely by manual laborers.
However, manually stocking an elevated work staging area with masonry materials tends to be relatively time-consuming, expensive, and unsafe. Naturally, the time and expense of manually stocking a staging area increases with the height to which the materials must be elevated. To reach a staging area atop multiple scaffolding levels, the materials must be lifted and set down through a series of intermediate staging areas, the vertical separation of which is limited by the height that a laborer can elevate the materials in one motion.
Accordingly, a need remains for a scaffolding lift system that overcomes the above-noted shortcomings.